Meta-Data and User Experience

I’m not much of a book reader, so when I do read a good book, it sticks in my head. David Weinberger’sEverything is Miscellaneous is one such good book, that speaks to the added value of meta-data. For non-techies, that’s all the descriptive information of an object – like your library catalogue. When you buy a book in Amazon or tag photos in Facebook, you’re leaving a trail of meta-data that when properly harvested, can create an amazing experience for users of those services.

I was reminded of David’s work recently when I found my dusty matchbook collection that was forgotten on a top shelf for over ten years. The value of a tiny bit of meta-data was as striking. And the absence of meta-data was equally striking.

Through most of the eighties and nineties, before smoking was banned in public places, most restaurants carried souvenir matchbooks. I’ve already confessed in a prior blog post my bizarre habit of writing meta-data in my dictionary. So you won’t be surprised that I wrote meta-data in matchbooks as well. That’s right, every time I was out for a meal, I would ask for a matchbook if they weren’t already on display at the maitre-d stand next to the toothpicks. My wife Miriam collected matchbooks too, and she enhanced them with meta-data just as I did.

Now we’re talking very sparse meta-data, not anything rich like the Dublin Core standard. It probably took less than five seconds to record three basic attributes – When? Who? Why? Obviously the “Where”?” was pre-populated on the matchbook itself. At some point, restaurants lost interest in matchbooks and Miriam and I lost interest in this strange habit. But I kept all the matchbooks nevertheless.

The first few matchbooks I opened had no meta-data. I had an empty feeling knowing I had been somewhere but not remembering with who, why, or when. I probably had an enjoyable evening with a business colleague, a friend, or my wife, but who knows? Its totally forgotten now.

But for the matchbooks that had meta-data, wonderful memories jumped back to life. Here are a few that span a ten-year period. Leave a comment if you were there.

The day before my first rafting trip down the Upper Gauley River, we were determined to find a TV to watch the Buckeyes. We stumbled upon The Owls Club, which had no windows and a peep-hole on the front door. We were lucky to come out alive.

User conferences are exhausting for the vendor and attendees. This dinner included belly dancers, sitting in fluffy pillows on the floor, and a waitress who poured a 2 foot stream of tea standing over our table without spilling a drop.

My wife’s high school alma mater, like all good Catholic schools, support themselves with a summer (beer) festival. The Fostoria St. Wendelin festival was never complete without a trip to the Black Cat, including their famous enlarging mirror over the men’s urinal.

Office parties always provide great folklore. This after-the-office-party party included a dance contest. I didn’t win.

We made a toast to the Germans who were still celebrating the fall of the Berlin Wall two days earlier. We probably also toasted my niece who was home babysitting.

Hmmm. A Monday night date with my wife. Obviously, this was before kids.

Miriam and Anne were on a business trip in Washington DC. It was also the 20th anniversary of Earth Day and thousands of people gathered in the National Mall.

Miriam and I celebrated our ten-year wedding anniversary at a fancy place while pregnant with our oldest son Matt.

This was a piggyback weekend stay in LA after a business trip. I hung out with my friend Benny, which included my first visit to the LA coliseum to watch a USC-UCLA football game. I cheered for UCLA.

What’s not to like about a bar in Key West named Billie’s? Every time I hear the song “I Can See Clearly Now” by Bob Marley, I think of this place.

Back in 1994, before strikes and steroids, I used to care a lot about baseball. We blew off a few hours of work to watch opening day.

For a number of years, we vacationed with a group of friends on a North Carolina beach. We mixed up kids with parents one day, and found this awesome diner on the 4th of July. Americana at its finest.